1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to electronic displays and more particularly to multi-color electronic displays based on luminescent semiconductor nanocrystals.
2. Description of the Related Art
Flat panel display technologies are currently displacing cathode ray tube (CRT) displays. CRT's main disadvantages are volume, weight and power consumption. On the other hand, CRT's image quality, resolution, and color are still unsurpassed. An alternative technology, which has already made it to the market, is that of liquid crystal displays (LCDs).
In liquid crystal displays, an image is produced by turning “on” or “off” pixels by selectively passing or blocking light from a backlight. This is done with the help of sheet polarizers and by controlling the polarization state of the light as it traverses the liquid crystal. In a color display, each screen pixel is actually made of three separate dots, each with a respective red, green, or blue filter printed on the glass in front of it (a fourth white dot may also be included to adjust contrast). These three primary colors are mixed in various amounts to form the variety of colors the user sees. Since the backlight is unpolarized and its spectrum is broad, a considerable amount of light is dissipated on the sheet polarizers and color filters, making these displays energy inefficient.
Other important flat panel display technologies which are currently being developed are field emitters, plasma displays and multi-color semiconductors and polymeric light emitting diodes based on electroluminescence and/or optical pumping.
A nanocrystal (or nanometer crystal) is an organic or inorganic single crystal particle having an average cross-section no larger than about 20 nm (200 Angstroms), and preferably no larger than about 10 nm (100 A) and a minimum average cross-section of about 1 nm or in some instances even a smaller average cross-section, i.e. down to about 0.5 nm (5 A). Typically the nanocrystals will have an average cross-section ranging in size from about 1 nm (10 A) to about 10 nm (100 A). A semiconductor nanocrystal is a nanocrystal of group II-VI (e.g. CdS, CdSe, CdTe, ZnS, ZnSe, ZnTe), or group III-V (e.g. GaAs, InAs, InGaAs, Inp) semiconductor compounds. Also included are group IV semiconductors such as silicon or germanium, and organic semiconductors. Nanocrystals are capable of emitting electromagnetic radiation upon excitation. The color of the emitted light depends on the size of the crystal and the material. The larger the crystal, the more red the output, and the wider the emission band. Nanocrystals generally have narrow emission bands, i.e. the wavelength band of emission does not exceed about 40 nm in the visible and preferably does not exceed about 20 nm. The width of the emission band scales with energy, not wavelength. Nanocrystals also generally have a broad absorption band, i.e. the electromagnetic radiation absorption continuously increases from the onset which occurs near to but at slightly higher energy than the emission band.
The growth of core/shell semiconductor nanocrystals is described in Xiaogang Peng et al., “Epitaxial Growth of Highly Luminescent CdSe/CdS Core/Shell Nanocrystals with Photostability and Electronic Accessibility,” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1997, 119, 7019-7029. U.S. Pat. No. 5,505,928 to Alivisatos et al. describes the preparation of III-V semiconductor nanocrystals. U.S. Pat. No. 5,262,357 to Alivisatos et al. describes formation of thin films from nanocrystal precursors. U.S. Pat. No. 5,751,018 to Alivisatos et al. describes the bonding of semiconductor nanocrystals to solid surfaces. U.S. Pat. No. 5,537,000 to Alivisatos et al. describes an electroluminescent device having an electron transport layer of semiconductor nanocrystals. The device has a hole injection layer, a hole transport layer, the nanocrystal electron transport layer, and an electron injection layer. Device output color is controlled by voltage as well as nanocrystal size and type. A flat panel display is produced from an array of the electroluminescent devices.
The use of luminescent semiconductor nanocrystals in biological probes is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/978,450.